Vertical Child Study Group

So far my experiences at the emergency shelter have been very rewarding. When I first started my service at the shelter, I wasn't exactly sure what to expect as far as what my role would be and what my duties would include. Lately, I have been spending a significant amount of time in high schools that my clients are in attendance of. The enrollment process can sometimes be very intimidating because the youth that come into the shelter have typically been in numerous schools and are lucky to have been at a placement for longer than three months. It can be a difficult adjustment for the students who are not necessarily accustomed to the structure that a typical high school has in place.

To help overcome some of these difficulties and to better meet the needs of the students, I attended a vertical child study group at Travis High School this week. Currently at the shelter right now we have three kids in attendance at Travis High School all of which are having trouble with grades, behavioral issues as well as attendance. The vertical child study group was designed to help address these issues while helping to facilitate a plan that allows for a greater success rate from the students. In addition to myself, my site supervisor, the 9th grade counselor and the 9th grade assistant principle, the child of topic is also in attendance to advocate for their needs. This is particularly beneficial for the student because it gives them a sense of empowerment and an opportunity to have some control in their life.

Overall, I found this meeting to be informative and helpful when it comes to bridging the gap between foster youth and their attendance in the public school system. Not only were we creating a structure to provide success for the student, but we were also educating each other in the process. I am not sure of how the outcome for our students will be because it is too early in the process yet to see any improvement, but I hope that by at least having the meeting we are taking the correct steps to ensure them more success at school. I hope to take advantage of these meeting opportunities in the future to help other clients be successful in a public school setting.